Why do I love you?

You, my love, unlike so many before you, show me what true love really is. You have shown me what it is like to be happy, to be healthy. You lift me up when I have no place to go. Your smile shines brighter than the morning star. You tell me that my past does not dictate the future. You show me how a man should act: gentle, passionate, enduring and faithful. Sometimes, you do not tell me what is on your mind when you have had a bad day, but that is ok: I still lay with you and be in your company until you want to talk. You protect me from the demons of my past, the visions of lovers past who have left me bruised physically and mentally. You have erased every expectation that I had formed in my mind about what true love really is. You have taught me that true love is not written in a mirror, it is not branded into your skin: it is painted gently and delicately along the broken cracks until it creates a seal. You told me that it is ok that I am broken; you patience will never grow thin. You show me every day that it does not matter how I was treated in the past, but how I grow to love again, no matter how long it takes. You told me that I am beautiful, even on the days I feel like garbage. You paint my nails when I feel lonely: never afraid to give up your masculinity. You hold me when I cry and tell me how strong I am day in and day out. You have fallen in love with my family, along with me, and for that, I am more than appreciative. Your reputation is not flawed: everyone knows you as the man who would lay down his life for the children he teaches.

Slowly but surely, you are helping me love again. Slowly but surely, I am melting into you. Slowly but surely, I am learning to trust again.

The promises I made are not just promises. I promise I will not fall into codependency. I promise I will fight my past, and never go back. I promise that someday, with your help, I will be the most loving bride you have laid eyes on.

I say all these things because you are helping me grow. I say all these things because you make me feel like my heart is a melted popsicle on the floor. I say these things because I love you.